


Astir Hlydni

by ChubRub (orphan_account)



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: BDSM, Collars, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Force-Feeding, Humiliation, M/M, Male Weight Gain, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings, Rehabilitation, Slight Gore (Chapter 10), Slow Build, Stuffing, Verbal Humiliation, Weight Gain
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-26
Updated: 2015-09-18
Packaged: 2018-03-19 18:31:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 19,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3619977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/ChubRub
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Loki is finally transported from his prison in Asgard he does not have high hopes for freedom. His new home/prison is Stark Towers, where Anthony has decided to help him 'rehabilitate', for reasons Loki does not understand. The Trickster God certainly does not mind taking advantage of the hospitality... in all of its forms.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Slow to start, sorry, but weight gain and BDSM in later chapters I promise. 
> 
> I have a tumblr specifically for fics now. If you're interested. I'm definitely going to be following back. :)  
> http://itschubrubstuff.tumblr.com/
> 
> More tags to come probably.

Loki never considered himself overly thick-headed. He was certainly smarter than most of the people he knew, usually able to see a con or a subtle trick from miles and miles away. That was why when he finally realized the truth behind his interactions with Stark, he became so annoyed. How could he not have realized?

The man had goaded him constantly. The short jibes over his clothing, armor, how thin he was, those blasted nicknames (which also took Loki longer than he would like to understand)... He had always assumed that Anthony behaved that way towards everyone. Sure, Loki caught a fair share more than the rest, but to be fair he had been evil at the time.

What was he thinking? He was still evil, damn it.

If he weren't, than he wouldn't have to wear the cuffs and the mask currently obscuring most of his face. Thor wouldn't be holding the other end of his chain as if he were a dog on a leash. He wouldn't be filled with so much bitter rage.

"Stop looking at me like that."

Thor's voice was sudden and barking, and a bit of a shock considering he didn't even turn around to see the way Loki was glaring at him. He had just assumed it was so, and he was correct. Loki, for his part, smirked under the mask but said nothing. He continued to stare, now satisfied with the knowledge that, if nothing else, he was bothering his brother.

"I mean it, Loki!" Thor snapped. Loki laughed, and the mask added a sinister echoing to the muffled laughter that Loki quite enjoyed. He'd never been the showman that Thor was, never too boisterous or loud, but he could appreciate the little flairs that added to a 'performance'. Thor slammed his fist against the wall of the elevator, making a deep dent and finally quieting his petulant brother.

When the doors opened Pepper Potts was there to meet them, holding a clipboard to her chest. She met them as if she were meeting businessmen, not a trace of fear in her eyes even as she stood before the God who had caused the New York Incident. Sure, he was in chains and did not look as menacing as he wished, but her snide attitude annoyed Loki. If he had use of his hands...

As if reading Loki's mind, Thor shoved the dark-haired man forward before he could finish his train of thought, and he nearly stumbled as his feet were bound in a similar fashion as his hands. Loki didn't put up a fuss, starting forward. He ignored the prattling of the human woman and his brother- it didn't matter it him as he scanned the hallways, looking for something- anything- he could use in an attempt to escape. He was bound, but he certainly wasn't helpless.

Or so he thought. Thor did not give him a chance to run away, and soon he was standing in front of Anthony Stark, in a room coated wall to wall with shining machines, buttons, but one big empty room that looked eerily similar to the Hulk's prison. The only differences seemed to be this one was quite a bit larger, and had a bed, which was just one solid rectangle coming from the ground with no legs and no way of moving it. It did look soft.

Loki supposed the other difference was that they were not, at this moment, flying in the air.

"Hey reindeer games." Anthony said, arms crossed.

He was wearing a shirt so thin that Loki could see his heart shining through it, and he could make out most of his physique as well. Sculpted, but not muscular. Why would it be, when his machines did all of the work for him? Loki's eyes snapped up to meet Stark's, and when he caught the smirk all the pieces were starting to fall into place.

"Welcome home." the man said sarcastically, unfolding his arms and gesturing to the prison with a bob of his head.

All of it seemed obvious now. Why Thor would bring him to his precious Earth when there were so many other places he could have hidden him away from home? He had been wondering that. Stark had requested it, certainly.

"Where is it?" Thor asked in a serious tone, and Loki was slightly annoyed at not knowing what 'it' was.

"Don't worry, Goldilocks, it's right here." Anthony said.

It was at that point that he walked behind Loki, which was irritating. Wrapped up in so many chains, Loki had problems turning his head, and he knew that if he moved his body Thor would tug on the chains, which always resulted in pain whether Thor had only meant it as a warning or not.

"You said you've tested this tool. On who? How can you be certain?" Thor asked in his deep, serious voice. Loki still didn't think it suited his brother to act so serious, though he would never admit that he preferred that buffoon his brother normally was. Or used to be, before Loki had started systematically trying to destroy the mans life.

"I did test it." Tony responded. Loki couldn't see the man but he could practically hear the shrugging of his shoulders. "Kid named Daniel Rand. And a few other not-so-nice guys. Danny's been the most helpful."

"And this Daniel Rand has access to abilities as strong as my brothers?"

Loki snickered under his mask.

"Maybe not." Anthony said, as if Loki had made a solid argument and had not just mocked him. "But some of the others did. I'll show you the footage. This'll work. And it'll be best for him, too."

The words came softer at the end, and Loki glanced over to Thor, who was staring at... whatever the hell it was Stark was holding. He looked guilty. This wasn't going to be good. Loki had learned by now that what Thor considered best for him involved chains, and a fair bit of pain. If whatever Stark was holding managed to make Thor looked guilty, Loki wanted nothing at all to do with it.

"Just do it, then." Thor said quickly, stepping back.

“Okay. I’m going to start on a medium setting, to be safe.”

“No.” Thor thundered, keeping his arms crossed. His shoulders flexed, and Loki had to wonder if he did so on purpose. “That’s too much of a risk.”

“We talked about this, that’s--”

“I. Do. Not. **Care**.”

There was a pause and Loki could not see how Anthony reacted to the order. Thor uncrossed his arms, and that was when he reached up and put one hand on either side of Loki's shoulders. At first Loki thought this was going to be the beginning of one of Thor's irritating speeches, until the hands tightened and Loki realized that Thor was holding him still. He felt hands move around his neck, Stark's hands, and something cold and metal clicked around his throat. He knew there was no point in struggling.

What he didn't expect, couldn't have known, was what this new instrument would do to him. Not until his brothers hands released him, and he crumbled to the floor from the weakness.


	2. Chapter 2

When Loki woke up, he felt as though he had been hit square in the chest by Mjölnir. Several times. He opened his eyes, and everything was blurred. But he could still hear, though the voices around him seemed muffled.

"You're the one who insisted I put it on the highest setting!" someone yelled. Stark, Loki recognized his vaguely whining tone. He could practically hear the man waving his arms around to articulate his point better. "He'll adjust to it soon, but you can't just zap the magic out of somebody that fast! His body was used to having it there. I TOLD you that--"

"Loki is too dangerous to leave in Midgard with even a trace of his power." Thor rebuffed. Loki could just barely make out his shape, if only by his red cloak. "But he is my brother, and we've been doing our best to retain the use of torture. Our culture has moved past that."

"Heh. Liar." Loki tried to say. It came out more like a purr, without much force behind it. Still there was a lull in conversation that Loki knew meant they had heard him.

"See?" Stark said, as if he were finishing making a point. Probably one he had been trying to prove before Loki was conscious. "He woke up. He'll be fine."

Loki took a deep breath, realizing that his mask was off for the first time in nearly a year. That's how they had heard him, then. He'd become used to mumbling things under his breath knowing that others wouldn't be able to hear them.

"No torture, he says." Loki continued, half-panting. "And what, pray tell, was the _whip_ for, brother?"

Thor didn't answer, and Loki couldn't see his reaction, so the goading was mostly a waste. Still he was certain that at the moment his brother must have at least looked slightly embarrassed.

"You can go now. I've got him." he heard Stark say, his voice practically whispered. "You know this is right."

"You have the means to contact me at any time. Do not be hesitant to use it. Unleashing him on your world would be... most unwise." Thor replied.

There were heavy footsteps, but they faded away and Loki closed his eyes.

"Just you and me now, Maleficent." he heard mumbled after a few moments, and then Loki was out again.

 

* * *

  
Loki only had a few waking moments over the next few days, and each was interesting.

The first time, he'd been alone. He was able to move his head a bit and blinked the blurriness from his vision, but it hadn't amounted to much at all. He found he was inside the prison he had seen earlier, on the bed. There was a startling lack of chains, but in his weakened state there wasn't much he could do about that. He had moved his arms a bit, flexing them to enjoy his new-found mobility, but he couldn’t move his head. Then he was out again.

The second time he awoke, he had a few more minutes. He saw Tony and Pepper outside of the cage, standing near one another and talking. He didn't call attention to himself and could just barely make out the conversation. Something about danger, risks, and then Pepper became quite annoyed and her voice became sharper as she tried to explain to Stark that he couldn't just do whatever he wanted with no regards to others. Anthony's voice started to rise as well, but Loki passed out again before he could really catch the reply.

The third time was odd, because he felt someone touching him before he opened his eyes. Once he came to a bit more, he heard that Stark was singing... something. Loki didn't know much about Midgardian music so he couldn't quite make out what it was at first, and he was a bit distracted because Anthony was holding his arm. Checking his pulse, maybe?

"Your singing is terrible." Loki slurred, and he heard Stark chuckle.

"Ah sleeping beauty awaketh." the man said, setting Loki's arm down. "Been two weeks."

Loki still didn't open his eyes, not ready for the blurriness and the room spinning. By the throbbing in his head, he knew it was inevitable.

"What did you do to me, Stark?" he asked. His voice was sharp as an ax and practically a growl.

"That thing 'round your neck there? I call it a paranormal dampener." Anthony explained. "Lots of sciencey mombo-jumbo went into making that, just for you."

Loki's hands tightened into fists even though it hurt, and the edge in his voice became more pronounced.

"You took away my magic?" he asked. He opened his eyes and, as he’d suspected, it hurt like hell. It was easy to ignore now. He looked down at his hand, his pale blue skin immediately sending a jolt of fright through his body, even if he could only make out the color through blurred vision.

He felt... violated. He tried only to let the anger show, but the betrayal ran much deeper than anger. Thor. Thor had let Stark do this to him. No. He’d wanted it, surely. Take away the only thing... His mother was gone, and his magic was the only connection he had to her. Thor knew that! He did this on purpose, to punish him further. He hated that mother may have favored him even slightly more when father did nothing but praise the blond-haired boy. He had always wanted both of their affection, to leave Loki with nothing. Now he had finally succeeded.

He did not even look like them anymore.

Loki started to hear a loud, incessant beeping that he'd been able to ignore before but now it was going faster.

"Calm down, reindeer games." Stark said quickly. "Your heart is racing and your body can't handle that right now. I didn't take it away. I can't. From what your brother tells me, no one can."

Tony, for his part, had developed quite a lot of talent for talking people down from the ledge since Bruce became his close friend. Finding the right words was crucial- pinpointing exactly why the anger was there.

"Dampener is the keyword here." Stark continued, and Loki felt a finger around his neck, tracing the edge of the cold, heavy object set there. "It's suppressing your magic, not taking it away. If it ever came off, you'd be destroying the whole city as we know it in no time. Which is why, I should point out, it's not going to be coming off anytime soon."

Loki couldn't suppress a little half-chuckle at the way Stark phrased the quip, but it was forced and sounded raw. He had practically given up on freedom anyway, but this violation hit him to the core.

"Is that why I'm here? To be a test subject for your new toy?" he asked, the blur finally clearing from his vision enough that he could see Stark, who was studying some sort of hologram projected in front of him.

"Oh, the testing phase is over on this bad boy." Anthony said, seemingly completely invested in the holographic screens before him. "This was it's main function."

"I've been locked up for over two years, I highly doubt a new means was completely necessary." Loki quipped. Though he had to admit as he lifted his head that he already preferred these confines over the ones back home.

First of all, he wasn't tied up. Ever since the prison riots, he'd been wearing that damn mask and wrapped in chains. Asgard had been less than kind to him this past year, and he hadn't even actively been the one to cause the riot. Regardless, no more reading for him. No more empty cell. And much more punishment, despite whatever lies Thor told to pacify his own morality.

"This isn't just a new way to keep you imprisoned." Stark quipped, flicking his fingers to change the screen. "This is all about rehabilitation."

Loki laughed, and Stark didn't even flinch.

“You're serious?” Loki asked incredulously. “Rehabilitation? For me? I nearly destroyed your planet, you fool!”

That... was too much. He shouldn't have raised his voice right after his heart had been racing. He fell back and tried to catch his breath without looking like he needed to do so.

“Yup, hadn't forgotten that.” Stark replied, but he sound more bored than frightened.

“Then what is it that you think you are doing?” Loki asked, trying not to pant. He was though, even if he didn't want to admit that to himself. He huffed. “Rehabilitation.”

He spat out the word, almost like it were a curse. There was no way he would ever be rehabilitated. He had been told that in Asgard, while the whip cut into his shoulder. It wasn't Thor, of course, Thor always pleaded with him to just apologize and take responsibility (which Loki refused to do).

No, it was Frandral, who was much less dashing holding a whip and narrowing in on your darkest fears, your deepest insecurities. He would tell Loki the truth. There was no place for him in this world or any other. If Thor did not still think of Loki as his brother in even the smallest way, Loki would have been killed and the world would be better for it. Besides, everyone knew he was frost giant filth.

“Well, you're here now. You might as well give it a try.”

Loki didn't have time to respond, the energy was sapped away from him once more and he fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your comments on the last chapter! I am going to try to post frequently, as I said, but even more frequently to start because it's such a slow build. I swear kinky stuff will be happening. Eventually.


	3. Chapter 3

It was another few days before Loki was able to stay awake for longer than a single conversation. When he was awake, Stark was usually there with those damn monitors, and a few times bringing food and trying to get Loki to eat. The first time, Loki pointedly refused, but Anthony shook his head.

“Look Mr. Wiseau, you're already barely able to keep your eyes open, why would I bother trying to poison you?”

Loki pursed his lips for a moment, and then he did start eating. Slowly, because he was weak, but he cleaned his plate easily.

“You must've been hungry.”

“I've been sleeping for weeks.” Loki pointed out.

“Yeah, but you were stick-thin before that. You came here with your ribs showing.”

“When did you see my ribs?” Loki raised an eyebrow. “I came here wearing a shirt. And several layers of chains, as well.”

The shorter man sighed and brushed his hair back.

“Don't worry about that.” he said with a smirk. “The how isn't important. Tell me why I could see them.”

Loki rolled his eyes, huffing slightly again. He was so tired, even when he could stay awake for longer than a handful of hours.

“I am an... Asgardian. I can go much longer than you without food.” he said. The pause came when he realized that claiming to be an Asgardian was harder now. He had yet to see a mirror, but he knew that the lie of it was written across his features now. “Of course, we don't often chose to.”

“I could tell by Thor.” Tony said sarcastically, sitting on the edge of Loki's bed. He was still reading those screens of his. Loki had taken a few peeks at the screens whenever he woke up, and found they often had nothing to do with him. “So they stopped feeding you?”

“They hadn't taken the mask off in a year.”

Loki was keen enough to see the twitch in Stark's eye, a bit of anger, perhaps?

“That's why sapping your magic affected you so much. It was probably all that was keeping you standing.”

Loki gave Anthony a look that said that he knew exactly that already, and Stark was an idiot for not already figuring it out.

“Well... That means you're going to need to eat a lot to get your energy up again.” Tony finally said after a moment of tense silence. “I'll get you another plate.”

 

* * *

  
So Tony brought Loki food. Often. One day Loki woke up to find Tony tinkering in the corner of his prison after another two weeks, and because he'd been eating regularly he was finally able to sit up and watch. Anthony had removed a panel, revealing wiring within.

“What are you doing?” he asked, using his arms to brace himself to stay upwards.

Stark was on all fours, and Loki had a very nice view of his backside.

“I'm making sure there's no chance you'll miss a meal again.” Tony said, tossing a beaming smile over his shoulder. “His name is Jarvis. Jarvis, say hi.”

“Hello, sir.” said a voice, and Loki looked around the room for its source. There was no one else here.

“Jarvis has access to all the food in the house. If you're hungry and there's no one here, he'll hook you up.” Stark said, and Loki's eyes narrowed. “No really. What's your favorite?”

Loki thought for a very long moment, catching his breath from the exertion of sitting up anyway.

“Seriously, anything.” Stark said, clearly proud of his invention and wanting to show it off.

A bit more thought, and Loki came up with something.

“Kjøttkaker”

Anthony's eyes widened slightly.

“... Oh... kay.” he said after a long pause.

“Kjøttkaker should not be a problem, sir.” Jarvis responded, and Loki glanced up at the ceiling where the voice seemed to be coming from with just the barest hint of a genuine smile crossing his face. “A dish that resembles Swedish meatballs, we have all of the ingredients. It shouldn't take more than half an hour to prepare. Would you prefer stewed cabbage or peas to accompany, Mr. Odinson?”

Loki tensed a bit and Tony raised his hand.

“Jarvis, call him Loki.” he said, his voice slow and careful. “Or... reindeer games. And I'm going to say cabbage because stewed peas are disgusting. Though both of those options sound disgusting.”

Loki lowered his eyes after a moment and soon Anthony was standing up, and the man opened up those holograms again. Loki narrowed his eyes.

“Why are you doing all of your work here?” he asked. “Afraid to leave me alone?”

His tone was mocking, clearly meant to inspire some modicum of fear in the other man. It didn't seem to work as Stark, again, did not look away from the screen.

“Not quite.” he said, that annoying little smirk on his face as usual.

“Part of this 'rehabilitation' nonsense?” he asked, and that seemed to nail it because Stark didn't respond. “Ah, there it is.”

Tony still didn't respond to that either.

“Sir, Miss Potts is at the door for you.” Jarvis called, and Tony closed the windows.

“Try not to walk, alright?” Anthony said as he backed out of the room. “You're not strong enough yet.”

So of course, as soon as Stark was out of view, Loki stood up just to prove him wrong. And this time his gamble paid off.

“Mr. Loki, I do have to agree with sir on this point, you should not be walking quite yet.” Jarvis said, and Loki shook his head.

“I have not walked unbound for nearly a year, 'Jarvis'.” Loki pointed out as he started across the room, refusing to prop himself up against the wall even though he knew it would be easier. “I refuse to be bound to bed any longer. When will Anthony be back?”

“He just left with Miss Potts, I assume it shall be several hours.”

Loki was shocked that this was not followed by some sort of vague threat of what would happen if Loki used this opportunity to attempt an escape.

“You can make me any food? Any food I'd like?” Loki asked, because escape wasn't exactly what was on his mind.

“Your meal should be ready in exactly twenty six minutes, sir.”

“Kjøttkaker and cabbage? That's hardly a meal for a God.” Loki said, falling beside the strange square-shaped device that Tony had installed. “I think a feast is in order.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the first chapter with actual 'smut'. It's not even that, really, but at least I'm finally delivering on the promise in the tags, haha. <3

Everyone was under the impression that Thor was the brother who could eat the most in their family, but they were all mistaken. Like most of the things his brother did, everyone made that assumption because Thor was loud. He had a boorish attitude that tricked people into thinking he was the best at absolutely everything.

But every single time Loki and Thor had competed in an eating contest- which had been quite often, mind you- Loki had won. Eating and magic were the two things Loki had always been best at unquestionably, as Thor had always been stronger and more charismatic.

Loki asked the walls if Anthony had put any restrictions on his food, and Jarvis replied that it wasn't the case. So, Loki ordered a real feast. His favorites of everything. Foods for celebrations, foods his mother used to make personally. He even tried to order wine, but Jarvis told him there was none to be had. When Loki asked why, Jarvis replied that the information was 'confidential'.

Soon Loki and the walls were developing a repertoire that the Asgardian was quite enjoying. Jarvis was quite cunning, actually.

“Fine, if there's no wine to be had... Almond milk should suffice.”

“Certainly, Mr. Loki.” Jarvis agreed, starting the preparations. He had access to an entire database of Norse cooking, which almost all of Loki's requests hailed, so he had no trouble coming up with a recipe for the drink. Anything they hadn't had on hand, Jarvis had been able to have ordered and delivered. Fresh, full-fat milk was one of them, because Tony only kept 2% on hand, and Jarvis summised that that would not meet Loki's standards. “The kjøttkaker is ready now. You can look inside the dispenser retrieve it, more will be arriving soon.”

Jarvis opened the dispenser then for Loki, and revealed quite a large helping of the meat cakes, potatoes and cabbage. Loki immediately started to shovel it into his mouth. After all, despite his nature he was still an Asgardian. He feasted just as his brother did, just quietly and, in his opinion, with more efficiency.

The conversation with Jarvis died once the food started coming and Loki absolutely glutted himself. He'd been starved for so long, and Anthony wasn't here to watch him humiliate himself. The man in the walls, for his part, didn't seem to be very judgmental at all, and even if he had been this practice was well-accepted in Asgard. Mostly Loki was ashamed by how badly he needed to binge, thanks to his forced starvation, and not the fact that he was doing so in the first place.

He’d been so hungry in his cage, chained. In the past year, Thor had only come to his cage four times. Each time he held a whip and demanded Loki repent. Loki never even tried to convince him he would. Lying would have been easy, but he knew Thor would not fall for it.

Even if Loki did have a change of heart, his brother surely would not have believed. Which made it odd that he kept demanding it of him. Loki requested food only once, the second time after seven months of starvation, and Thor denied him.

His only other, much more common visitor, had been Frandral...

As his stomach started to bow out, Loki undid his belt to make more room, which was around the third entree he'd requested, out of the twelve he asked for. He slowly made his way through each and every one. Thick stews, prepared meats, thick crusty breads and gravy... He'd ordered quite the balance so that nothing ever became boring.

It was comforting to eat food from home, and once it started to hurt him…

He liked the pain. He always had. Not just from eating, though the pressure was certainly a type of pain that was hard to replicate and felt wonderful. Any pain, so long as he chose to partake in it, he cherished.

He continued to eat and slowly leaned back further and further until he was mostly sprawled out on the floor, only hid head and shoulders using the wall to stay upright so he could 'comfortably' eat. He felt the pain of being too full and relished it, closing his eyes as one hand moved to his stomach. The other kept the leg of lamb up to his mouth so he could continue eating.

Once he finished the last glorious bite of the last plate, Loki sighed and leaned back until only his head was resting on the wall. He had certainly gotten more of an opportunity to eat lately due to Anthony, but not to the wonderful excess he enjoyed. Not that he did this often back home, honestly. Usually he only ate like this to agitate Thor.

He didn’t want to end up like Volstagg, after all. Moderation.

“Mr. Loki? Are you alright? Shall I call Mr. Stark?” Jarvis offered, and Loki waved his hand.

“Don't you dare.”

And, as Loki seemed to be doing often as of late, the younger brother fell asleep. Right there on the floor, with his gluttonous belly on display sticking out proudly under his shirt, the thinned-out cloth conforming to his shape. A bit of light blue flesh peeked out beneath, but the curve was so pronounced that Loki could not even see it from his position. His head lolled to the side, a small, content smile on his face as he drifted off.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The whole point of smaller chapters was to post frequently, but now that I am I'm a little worried that posting too frequently is going to be horribly irritating. I'll find the middle-ground, I swear. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.

That was what Tony came home to that night, several hours later after he had walked Pepper home. Loki, on the floor, surrounded by dirty dishes with a huge stomach that seemed almost comically large on his thin body. He was still wearing one of Tony's t-shirts that the man had let him borrow, and the fact that it was too short really showed. At least two inches of Loki's blue stomach was sticking out from under the fabric, and the rest of the shirt was skin-tight, showing his naval through the black cotton.

“... Jarvis, what is Loki doing on the floor?” Tony asked after a moment standing outside the cell. “More importantly, why does he look like a tic that's about to pop?”

“Apparently, he believed a feast was in order.” Jarvis quipped, opening the doors as Tony entered the prison. “Sir.”

“I guess so. How much did he eat?”

“Twelve courses, and about a quart of almond milk.”

Tony stared in awe and slowly moved forward. He imagined whatever energy Loki had possessed when he left had been drained in his effort to stuff himself, so he probably didn't have to worry about the god waking up anytime soon.

Tentatively he reached out his hand and cupped Loki's rounded stomach, feeling how taunt it really was. It definitely would not be a good idea to move him. He'd probably pop, given how fat he looked at the moment. Tony let his finger dip into the obvious dent in his shirt where Loki's belly button was, smirking to himself.

“Jeeze, reindeer games...” Tony said softly, brushing his hair back. He stood up and grabbed the pillow off of Loki's bed, tucking it beneath the gods head and then started out of the room. “Jarvis, let me know when he wakes up.”

“Will do, sir.” Jarvis responded in his same cynic tone, closing the doors behind Tony as he left.

Tony spent the next hour in his lab. There was a lot he could do from Loki's room (which he didn't know why he kept insisting on calling it a room when it was clearly a cage), but not everything. Lately he'd been making less hardware on his own, trusting Jarvis to operate robot arms per his instructions from the empty white room he spent most of his time in.

Today he was planning on just checking on how that was going while Loki slept. Usually he stayed in the room with Loki even while he was sleeping, just in case he woke up, but this time Tony had a feeling if he stayed in there, things might get awkward.

Loki looked pretty good with a big gut, and Tony had to try to forget that as quickly as he could by distracting himself with work. It was a common tactic lately because he couldn't resort to alcohol.

After about an hour of working he had almost been able to get the vision of Loki wearing his too-small shirt out of his head, and then Jarvis chimed in.

“Based on his neurological functions, Mr. Loki will be awake in about fifteen minutes, sir.”

Tony nodded. He could monitor everything about Loki through that collar of his, which was coming in handy right now.

“Keep me updated on what he does when he wakes up.” Tony replied, cheeks slightly red. Jarvis gave his usual 'yes, sir' and Tony continued his quality control.

Fifteen minutes later, Jarvis started his updates. For the next half-hour or so the updates came at five-minute intervals.

“Mr. Loki is waking now, sir.”

“He is now attempting to stand.”

“He is not faring well...”

“His attempts failed.”

“He is still quite out-of-breath from the failed attempt, though not so much so to worry for his medical health.”

“He is trying again now.”

“Mr. Loki has made it back to his bed, and he seems to be going back to sleep.”

“Thank God.” Tony said with a sigh. That would have been embarrassing, if Loki had needed his help to get up. He had no idea how the Asgardian would react to him even offering. “Tell me if he tries to move again.”

Thankfully, Anthony never received that update, so Loki either slept through the night or resigned himself to not moving until he was _actually_ ready for it this time. Tony took a cold shower and went to sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to the people who commented last time! I was assured that frequent chapters were not as annoying as I feared, so here's another. I'll also start to make them a bit longer, but I'm actually a few chapters ahead (I like having some in the bank, it keeps me from feeling overwhelmed, I know that's silly) so those already have their ending points, but eventually they will get at least a little longer. :)

Loki didn't go to sleep right away after his arduous trip back to his bed. His stomach was grumbling from the effort he put in and for some time he had to comfort it before he could drift off. When he did wake up after a short nap, he glanced up at the ceiling.

“Are you still there?” he asked. “Jarvis?”

“Yes, Mr. Loki. How can I assist you?” Jarvis responded, just as he was programed.

Loki blinked, still not entirely sure what the voice in the walls actually was, or who. Tony called him Jarvis, but he certainly wasn't a regular Midgardian. First of all, he was much more polite than Loki was used to.

“Where are you?” he asked.

“My interface has integrated into the entire tower, including, most recently, this room.”

Loki considered this, not entirely sure what that meant but positive now that Jarvis was not human by any stretch of the imagination. Humans didn’t have the power to be in multiple places at once.

“And why did Stark put you in here? To watch me?” Loki asked.

“Partially. Though I had been already wirelessly monitoring the paranormal dampener, so while it does assist that I may now monitor you with a few more of my programs, I was not installed here for that purpose. While placing me here Mr. Stark mentioned that you were emaciated and that I was to deliver any food you request.”

Loki smirked, pleased that Stark would regret that decision soon enough. Maybe the man was obscenely rich by this world's standards, but Loki must have put some sort of dent in his food supply.

“Emaciated is going a bit far.” Loki reasoned, setting a hand on his bloated stomach.

“Not quite. Your abnormal thinness is concerning. Six foot two inches, one-hundred and thirty-six pounds certainly falls under the category of worryingly underweight.” Jarvis replied. “Though after your large meal, that number has risen to one-hundred and forty-one, which is closer to a normal weight, that is theoretically going to digest and bring the number back down.”

“Hm. I'm used to holding more.” Loki joked, slightly disappointed. He didn't actually know the Midgardian system of measurement, but five pounds didn't sound like much food. Only twelve courses, too.

“Are you now?”

Loki turned his head because this time the voice didn't come from the ceiling, it came from just outside of his prison. Tony was standing there, twirling a pen in his fingers. The door opened for him (Loki hadn't even bothered to try to get them to open for himself), and he walked in. Loki leaned his head back and took a deep breath.

As he did that, Tony had to try _very hard_ to turn his eyes away from the tummy that was still quite stretched and bloated even after several hours. What was Loki thinking? Of course Tony had seen Thor glut himself silly on any type of food available, but he'd never thought Loki was capable of such a thing.

Somehow, seeing Loki with a huge stuffed gut was different than Thor. Maybe it was because the man was so slim everywhere else, with almost no muscle to be found. It made the tummy area look even larger.

Loki didn't tell Anthony that he was doing a terrible job at not staring. At first he thought the man was staring at him because he was a spectacle. It was actually getting under his skin. He wanted to yell at the man to stop, and demand his magic back so he could hide his jotun features once more.

Before he could though, he started to catch on. Anthony wouldn't try to hide his gaze if he just saw Loki as an oddity. No. He clearly liked it. Not the blue, marked skin, or the red eyes he knew he currently possessed.

His gut.

“You made a valid point, I hadn't eaten for over a year.”

“So you ate a years-worth of food?” Tony mocked, but Loki didn't seem to feel much shame. Before the god could come up with a biting reply, the shorter man continued. “And gross food, at that. I looked through the list. Sure as hell couldn't pronounce any of the names...”

“Hardly a years-worth... It was surprisingly good, considering where it was made--”

“Tonight we'll have some good old-fashioned earth food.”

There was a pause for a long moment, and Loki turned his head away.

“Why are you doing this, Stark?” he asked. “I tried to kill you, if you haven't forgotten.”

This next silence was more prominent. It hung heavily, and Loki was surprisingly not pleased with the reaction. Making people feel uncomfortable was one of his favorite activities in the past, but at the moment it wasn't as satisfying as it normally was. There must have been something wrong with him. Probably his bloated stomach.

“Not just me, everyone.”

“I wasn't planning on killing everyone.” Loki quickly corrected. “What's the point of being a king if there's no one to preside over?”

“You know,” Tony started, and Loki recognized the tone in the voice as more serious than usual. “We don't really do that 'king' thing so much anymore. There's a few about, but it's more a novelty than any real authority.”

“The few who are 'about' clearly aren't doing it right.”

“Well, they aren't on their backs with gut's so big they can't sit up straight, if that's what you mean.” Anthony replied in a snippy voice, turning on one of the screens so he could start his work.

“Answer my first question.” Loki demanded. “I've gone from being bound, gagged and whipped daily to having a private room with talking walls. You aren't testing this garish device, as you said, so why am I here?”

Tony glanced over at Loki, and the god knew that his eyes held some sort of meaning, but he didn't understand it.

“Your brother asked us to find a way to get you out of Asgard.” he said, but then- once again- he cut of Loki before he could say anything. “Away from magic, sure. But there's more to it than that. Blondie didn't know what they were doing to you.”

Tony glanced through the hologram then, attempting to meet Loki's eyes. Loki wasn't being cooperative with that, choosing to keep his own eyes locked with the ceiling.

“Once he found out, he couldn't keep you there.”

Loki laughed as loudly as he could without shaking his stomach too much (though it did shake slightly).

“Is that what he told you?” he asked, adjusting himself to sit up as much as he could managed. It wasn't much, and when he did so his stomach pushed out even further. “That he didn't know?”

Tony sighed and swiped his hand, and the screen that had been partially obscuring him disappeared. Loki met his eyes genuinely this time, realizing that the man looked... vaguely healthier than he'd last seen him. Almost shockingly so, actually. His skin was brighter, and he had lost those awful circles under his eyes. Loki had been too weak to notice before. Apparently a large meal had done him good, because he was definitely noticing now.

“Just be grateful.” he said, tilting his head to the side. “Most murderers don't get this sort of treatment.”

Loki smirked and raised his eyebrows a bit at that, which apparently wasn't the correct response because Tony left a few moments later and didn't look back. Loki would have gone after him and left him at least one more scathing remark, but even he knew that it wouldn't be half so intimidating with his gut sticking in the air.

Maybe he'd made a mistake, eating so much. Either way, Tony didn’t come back with the Midgardian food he had promised.


	7. Chapter 7

In fact, Loki actually didn't see Tony for two days after that. Personally, he actually didn't understand it. It wasn't as if he had said anything particularly cruel or done much underhanded. Honestly he'd only reminded Tony of things the man already knew.

The god didn't partake in anymore feasts, but he did keep full enough, especially when it seemed eating and talking to Jarvis were the only two activities he had at his disposal. And he could only talk to the voice for so long before two things happened.

First, he began to feel crazy speaking to walls.

Second, Jarvis would begin to block off information as classified and warn Loki that if he continued asking the questions he would alert Tony, even when Loki thought his questions were perfectly innocent.

“I'm not asking how to turn it off.” Loki insisted one day as he sipped at his stew. He was sitting on his bed, staring up at the ceiling whenever it spoke to him. “Just how it works.”

“That is your third time questioning the methods used for the paranormal dampener within one hour. As per instruction, I will alert Mr. Stark now.” Jarvis replied as Loki rolled his eyes.

“That seems a bit unnecessary...” Loki pointed out, but Jarvis didn't respond. The god sighed and finished his stew quickly, knowing that he'd probably have a visitor soon enough.

Which, of course, was why he'd asked three times.

Jarvis was a polite interface, but he wasn't close to entertaining. There was no way to annoy him, or to startle him, no face to read. Maybe that's why Loki was allowed to have him in his room, but either way he wanted to see a person, even if he had to get into trouble to do it. After all it wasn't the first time he was willing to get into trouble for something he wanted, and it would not be his last either.

When Tony arrived Loki was waiting in what he knew looked like an effortlessly seductive position, though it was well-practiced. Tony looked somewhat tired, but still better than he had when he and the god first met several years back.

“You wanna know about the collar?” he asked, stepping into the prison. He sounded slightly annoyed and about as tired as he looked. “Go ahead.”

“Oh. I don't really care about the collar.” Loki admitted with a smirk, propped up on his elbows. His stomach was back to being flat, not concave, and it only now occurred to him that maybe he should have overeaten before 'summoning' his guardsman. That had flustered the man well enough before.

Tony just sighed, loudly, and leaned against the wall.

“Of course not.” he said, as if he should have seen that coming. He really should have. “You just asked so Jarvis would call me in.”

Though Anthony seemed somewhat annoyed, he didn't make a move to leave so Loki called the whole thing a win. Firstly, he wanted to experiment. He stood up, and approached the man. He was surprised that Tony didn't flinch.

“Don't look so disappointed.” Tony said, and Loki took a step back. “You're declawed, kitten.”

Tony brushed his own neck as if to remind Loki of the constant weight along his paler one. As if he could forget.

Loki glared for several moments, taking in the context of what Anthony said. He may not have magic, but he had fought the man before, Anthony knew that Loki could fight hand-to-hand. Maybe Stark just assumed he wouldn't, maybe the collar did more than stifle his magic. Loki decided not to test either of the theories.

“I'm bored.” Loki said, glaring down at Tony. “They used to give me books. Not recently, but in the first prison.”

“Have you tried asking Jarvis?”

“Of course I tried. He says he's only authorized to feed me.”

Tony made a face that Loki could see was trying to be snarky, but there was something underneath it that the god could also see. People who were not accustomed to lying had a much harder time hiding the truth from people who were very comfortable with it. Maybe his little Piper or Loki's foolish brother would fall for it, but not Loki.

“Why don't you use that to entertain yourself? You clearly did the other night.” he said.

Ah, there is was. Loki's appetite was still on his mind. Interesting.

“I hadn't eaten in a year. You offered me a feast, I accepted.” Loki responded confidently, refusing to let the events of the other night bother him or shame him as Stark clearly hoped.

“I didn't _quite_ offer a feast.” Tony corrected. “I installed a device so you wouldn't go hungry. You decided on the feasting part.”

“You've met my brother, haven't you?” Loki asked rolling his eyes and turning away. Clearly his glare had no effect on Tony. Damn. He thought the red eyes would be worth something. Besides that, though, this was going well. He didn’t mind the direction the chat was going. “You must have seen an Asgardian appetite before.”

Tony laughed and shook his head.

“I have, but I didn't expect it from you.”

“Oh? Why not?” Loki asked. He held up his bare arm, staring at the marks etched within the skin, the way the white light would make it look almost like ice. “Because of this? I was still raised among them.”

“No, that’s not it. Thor's.... Well, big.”

Loki turned back to look at Tony. Of course he didn't look surprised, he realized the size difference between himself and his brother was quite large. They were close to the same height- close enough that they used to argue over it constantly- but Thor was built like a warrior, Loki like a mage.

“And?”

“You don't look like the type to indulge.” Tony replied with a smirk. “Even before the forced starvation. They invented the word ‘svelte’ for guys like you.”

“And svelt humans can't eat the same as... what word did they invent for my brother?” Loki asked, feigning confusion. “Idiot, but I mean his body type.”

“Burly.” Tony offered, ignoring the insult. Maybe even a little pleased by it. “And not traditionally, no.”

“In Asgard it's well-known that Thor can not out-eat me.”

“Which is a big deal in Asgard, I suppose?” Tony asked.

“Just friendly competition.” Loki replied, shrugging. “But it's one of the few physical sports I bested my brother in, and he always took it so very personally...”

Tony shook his head and smiled, obviously able to tell that Loki enjoyed that Thor had always been upset.

“I'll find you something to read.” Tony finally offered after another moment of Loki watching him with those crystal clear blue eyes. “I'd hate for anyone to claim that I'm not a nice captor.”

Loki laughed and crossed his arms.

“Most captors don't care about being 'nice'.” he mentioned, and he swore he could see a bit of a blush on Anthony's cheeks. “Why would you?”

There was a heavy pause, again, and Tony opened up one of his programs. Since Loki had become strong enough to move Tony hadn't spent nearly so much time with him. Loki had assumed that was going to be the status quo from here on out, he didn't imagine that he would have the pleasure of company as a prisoner.

“Whether you believe it or not, Thor still cares a lot about you.” Tony replied, eyes now set on his hologram. Loki noticed now that the man liked to keep busy, he didn't like talking to someone one-on-one without some sort of program separating him from having to actually look at the one he's talking to. “He plead on your behalf. Wants you to be saved.”

Loki rolled his eyes and fell back onto his bed. He didn't believe Tony for even a moment.

“You have some sort of ulterior motive.” he said with certainty. “I'll figure it out, Stark.”

Tony simply rolled his eyes and continued his work without responding to Loki.


	8. Chapter 8

Tony made good on his promise and Loki did receive some books. Stark made sure to give him some variety, including making sure that there was some Midgardian history and non-fiction set in this world, which he insisted would help Loki 'adjust'.

Which of course confirmed, for Loki at least, that this was banishment. He was never going to be allowed to return home... A fact which he earnestly wished he were more upset over. Without his mother, his tether to magic restricted, his throne stolen from him, the reality of his blood revealed, now unable to even hide it... He had no reason to wish to return home.

But he didn't prefer Earth, either.

While Loki read, he ate. He trusted Jarvis to prepare his food to such a point that he even started letting the voice offer him foods he'd never tried. The snacks became so common that he had something to eat in his prison more often than when he didn't.

Even so, it came as a surprise to Loki when one day Stark showed up with several bags that were radiating heat and smelled surprisingly delicious. He spotted Loki's confused expression and held up the bags as he walked in.

“I told you I'd teach you about Earth food. Jarvis told me you were growing an interest.” He explained as he began pulling paper wrappings out of the bags and setting them on Loki's bed.

“This is why I need a table, Anthony.” Loki said pointedly as he scooted up the bed to make room for the food. There really wasn't enough room and Tony had to start stacking them on top of one another. “What do you think I would do with it? I’m assuming my cage is sturdy enough to withstand me throwing a table at the walls if it came to mind.”

Tony handed Loki a container and nodded to him to try the contents.

“French fries. Give it a shot.” he insisted, still unloading more food. The bags were different colors, so Loki had to assume Tony had brought him more than one type of foods to try.

Loki sighed and took one of the fries out, glancing it over before popping it into his mouth. It wasn’t bad, surprisingly enough, and so he grabbed another couple and ate them as well. Tony gave him some ketchup to dunk them in, and after that they only lasted seconds.

Once a challenge was presented, Loki’s focus became slightly narrowed. It wasn’t as though he forgot Tony was there, and he spoke when he was asked questions, but for the most part his attention stayed on the food. Delicious food. Warm and salty and new. He unwrapped the ‘burgers’ with eagerness and took big bites, eyes moving up to Anthony, who was just staring at him.

“None for yourself, Stark?” he asked.

“I had my share on the way over. Besides, it looks like if I put my hands anywhere near the food I’d lose a finger.” Tony joked, sitting back on the bed with one arm slung over his knee.

Loki didn’t laugh, but he offered a bit of a smirk before cutting it off with another bite of food.

"So this is just how you all eat in Asgard, then?" Tony after after Loki had been eating for another few minutes and finished off a good portion of the first 'course'.

"Not all." Loki said casually, looking around for what to try next after the hamburgers. He was quite enjoying himself, actually. He was enjoying even more the fact that Tony seemed anxious. Not frightened, but uncomfortable. Not so uncomfortable that he was going to leave, though, which meant there was a reason Tony was staying. Loki was almost certain he knew what it was. "Warriors, mostly. The ones who come home from long battles and want to celebrate. Eventually, it becomes a habit. That's why most of them get those unsightly potbellies."

Yup.

There it was.

The way Tony's face lit up _just so_ proved everything. Now Loki couldn't wait to use it to his advantage.

"But not you, huh?" Tony asked, wondering if it were time to stand up and start working. Unfortunately he couldn't stand up, and he was lucky he'd pulled up his leg to hide the way his body was reacting to Loki's eating and poor choice of words. Potbellies. It sounded so... well.

"I only feasted when brother challenged me. Which I think only went to upset him even more. He would push himself every night and be so damned proud of himself when he thought he could 'finally' do it, and then..." Loki grinned. "He'd find out I had been bluffing how full I was the last time. It was a fun game."

"You're awful." Tony joked, shaking his head.

Loki didn't disagree, but he liked the way Tony was saying the words with a small half-smile on his lips. The man didn't sound angry or accusatory, which were the two tones of language he'd been used to listening to. That and Thor's heavy, empathy-soaked speeches that made him want to hurl.

He moved onto 'tacos’ next. Tony explained to him that these were exotic, and Loki adored them. They were a bit spicy, but not so much so that he had problems (sometimes spicey food upset his stomach), and he'd never had something with that specific type of flavoring to them. They also went down faster than the hamburgers because he enjoyed them so much. Still they did a number on his middle, causing him to lean back and once again take off his buckle. Tony's eyes narrowed right in and Loki had to hide his pleased look.

"No potbelly for you, though." the man teased, clearly motioning to what did, at the moment, look like a bit of a pot belly.

"It's not the same." Loki shot back, scooting forward to reach for more food. His belly did push out over his loosened jeans a few inches, but the shirt was still hiding it... For now. Loki didn't intend on a 'small' feast like the last one. As long as Tony stayed, he would continue.

"Looks the same from here." Tony mumbled, glancing away with a blush on his cheeks. Loki laughed and shook his head.

“I’m nothing like them.” he insisted, taking a big bite of something crunchy and delicious. The side of the container said KFC. It was greasy, but Loki didn’t mind.

“Right.” Tony replied, clearly not believing it.


	9. Chapter 9

For the rest of the meal, Tony watched Loki eat. Every so often he would glance away, or start making his way to the computer, but Loki kept him entranced on purpose. He would moan, or leaned back and push his stomach out to see Tony’s reaction.

When there was only one take-out bag left, he decided to put on a real show. He squirmed in such a way that made the too-tight shirt he was wearing slide up to his naval, and closed his eyes. He heard Anthony gulp.

“I… heh…” he started. He wished the panting was part of the act, but it wasn’t. He was really out-of-breath… This food was heavier than Asgardian fair. “You humans… there are some things you can do well.”

“You’re not going to finish?” Tony asked. Just as Loki had predicted.

“I can’t. I can barely bend at the waist…” Loki pointed out, opening one eye to study Tony’s face. The man had no way of noticing with his eyes glued to Loki’s gut. “If the food weren’t spread on the bed…”

Seconds later, one of the wrapped sandwiches plopped on Loki’s chest.

“Finish.” Tony said, his voice becoming oddly authoritative. Loki felt his breath catch for a moment at the tone and unwrapped the food, stuffing the first bite into his mouth quickly.

Swallowing was difficult, he was stuffed so full. He groaned when he finished the sandwich, but not even seconds later another wrapped foodstuff was tossed onto his chest. Loki glanced up, and Tony wasn’t looking at him anymore.

“Anthony…” he started. He was actually not entirely sure if he could finish.

Tony’s eyes narrowed slightly and he shot Loki a look that sent shivers down his spine.

Despite having been raised to be a king (or he thought he had been)- or maybe _because_ he'd been raised as a king, with that much responsibility constantly looming over him- he always enjoyed letting other people take charge in certain situations.

Never so much in his eating habits, but there was a first time for everything. He actually found himself enjoying it already.

“Three more sandwiches. That’s it. Eat.” Tony commanded.

Loki did as he was told, shoveling the remaining food into his stomach even though it hurt to do so. His stomach stretched to accommodate the food, bulging out like a pregnant woman. If he felt a little foolish the last time he overate, he felt even worse now. He was practically immobile, pinned down by his gigantic belly.

He put one hand on each side of his gut and glanced up at Tony, panting. He was waiting for Tony to say something, but the man seemed frozen. Frozen staring at him, which was nice, but the man seemed like he was at a loss as to what to say. Loki sighed.

“Well?” he asked after a moment of Stark’s staring. Tony blinked and stood up, starting to pick up the food wrappers.

He was trying to look ‘normal’, but Loki saw his hands trembling.

"Well what?" the rich man asked, voice higher than usual.

Tony wasn't going to fool him, and honestly Loki wasn't ready to let this scene end. Not without a bit more pleasure to balance out the pain he was feeling. His stomach was stretched and red, pinching against his bottoms and causing his shirt to ride up. He took advantage of this and 'tried' to sit up. Half-heartedly, of course, because he was much more interested in Tony's reaction than just sitting up. He went out of his way to struggle, and Tony was staring.

"You can't start and not finish..." Loki said when he had Tony's full attention again.

"You did finish."

"Not that."

Loki sighed and flopped back, his belly shaking slightly from the movement. When Anthony kept staring but didn't ask Loki to elaborate. Which probably meant he knew exactly what the bloated God was talking about, but wasn't secure enough to confirm it without some sort of invitation. Annoying? Yes, but Loki could handle it.

"You tempt me with food, but that's not all you wanted." Loki accused, meeting Stark's eyes. "You enjoyed giving the orders earlier, why must I ask for them now? I'm too full for this, it's tiring..."

Tony smirked and moved closer, one finger moving up to run along the curve of Loki's gut.

"I don't think it's in your best interests to be taking part in any other activities in this state anyway, reindeer games." he pointed out, and Loki huffed.

"I am a God, I can--"

"You just said you were too tired to speak, and yet you're prepared for..." Tony paused. "What, exactly, were you insinuating?"

Loki didn’t like the look on Tony’s face. The look that said, ‘if you don’t say it, I won’t do it. I’m in control now.’ Well... Maybe he liked it a little. The god closed his eyes for a moment and squirmed under his heavy stomach.

“It doesn’t have to involve… me moving at all…” he mentioned, glad he was already flushing from the exertion of eating too much so Tony couldn’t take credit for it. “My stomach is aching.”

“Oh?” Tony asked, moving one hand to Loki’s stomach. They both felt a tingle run down each of their spines from the contact. “And who’s fault is that?”

“You made me finish it.”

Loki did not believe Tony was listening anymore, he was leaning down, placing both hands on either side of Loki’s sizable gut and pushing the tight black shirt up until it sat on the top of the ‘shelf’ his stomach currently made. The dark-haired human leaned down, and… Loki couldn’t think of a better word for what the man did but ‘nuzzling’.

Before he knew it, Tony was proving that he had, indeed, heard him.

“You just said you were a God, and yet I, a lowly mortal, can make you do things?” he locked eyes with Loki, almost daring him to break contact as he squeezed the Asgardian’s engorged stomach between both hands. “That much be horribly embarrassing for you.”

Loki hadn’t thought that far ahead and his jaw tensed for a moment, but honestly the feeling of his bloated stomach being manhandled kept him from being able to become truly angry. The pressure hurt, but it hurt in a way Loki had always enjoyed, sending a jolt of excitement up his spine.

“Nothing clever to say?” he asked, making Loki refocus on the conversation.

Loki shivered and closed his eyes. He did his best to keep the red from his cheeks, but he could not get rid of all of it.

“There are times when I don’t mind being horribly embarrassed.” he admitted.

The silence that followed was as heavy as his stomach. After a few moments, he added.

“So long as I’m still controlling it.”

Once he said that he looked up. He’d expected to see Stark smirking at him. He was ready to be mocked, perhaps, but honestly enough people in Asgard knew his preferences that it didn’t embarrass him. But Thor had expressly ordered him not to tell anyone, which was one of the reasons he confessed so easily. He expected to endure some laughter, but instead Tony’s face was solemn.

“Is that so?” he asked. Loki hesitated, and then nodded. “Hm.”

“Astir hlydni.” Loki replied, as if that were an explanation though he knew Stark would not understand it. Tony blinked and shook his head.

“You Asgardian’s have a fun name for everything, don’t you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey actual sexy things... almost. Only took nine chapters! But even then, if it still feels a little fast for you guys, blame the seclusion of the room on how quickly it's going. Loki only sees Tony, and to Tony this place is completely cut off from the outside world- so it twists things a bit and makes it easier to give in to goading and desires and stuff. 
> 
> That's my excuse anyway.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything changes, Loki accepts that, but he had hoped his body would have remained relatively the same... He was wrong. WARNING: THIS is the chapter with the blood in it! SKIP IF SQUEAMISH, the next chapter will have a summary for you. :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, I gotta apologize. I fell off the wagon on this one, and I'm really sorry. I just lost some confidence in this story and got busy with a new job. I'm jumping back on again. I have a few chapters written already, because I'm actually going to be busy AGAIN not too long from now (I'll be at DragonCon and then have other personal business to attend to), but I'm going to try to get this story back on the rails. Hopefully give you some actual weight-gain goodness soon, as well.
> 
> To make up for it, I did put two chapters together for this one, so it's pretty long! Again, I'm sorry!!

Despite his confession, nothing happened that day. Tony left without giving any other orders or providing Loki with any happiness- pain or pleasure. He mumbled something about research, and told Loki to ‘sleep it off’. He even turned off the lights on his way out. 

Loki didn’t sleep. He sat in the darkness, annoyed that he was rebuffed, but hopeful for the future. 

He did not see Tony for a few days after their… close encounter, but he wasn’t upset. He spent the time alone reading and scheming.

If Tony liked a full stomach, he could see to that. He could have another feast, and then ask Jarvis too many questions about something off-limits. It wouldn’t be so difficult… A bit obvious, perhaps, but not difficult. 

However, the day he planned to actually go through with it, he woke up with a throbbing headache. It was so sudden, so unexpected, that in the middle of the night in his dark room he sat up bolt upright and grasped at his head. He could have almost screamed, the pain was so intense. His temples were pounding, and he felt like the back of his eyes were on fire. 

He heard Jarvis say something, but he couldn’t hear it. He pressed down on the sides of his head, hoping that the added pressure could numb the pain somewhat.

That was when he first felt them.Small, pointed bones just behind his temples. Bones that were not there before. Causing dents in his skin, small nubs. He could feel the points of them.

**Horns**.

“No!” he cried out, wishing that he had magic now more than ever. 

Not so that he could stop the growth, though that would have been appreciated, but just for the catharsis using the force of his anger for destruction. To scream and have nothing around him react to his anger… it was frightening. He felt so weak, as if he didn’t even exist. His anger did not matter, the world didn’t react to him.

Except… when it did. When he a hand reach out, set itself on his back. Loki was too distracted by the pain to do anything about that, because it was becoming worse.

They were  growing . Right beneath his fingers, he could feel them. His magic had repressed his jotun blood for so long, now it was alive and strong within him. Compensating for lost time.

“Don’t touch me!” he growled when Tony tried to pry his hands away from his head. “Get away!”

Tony didn’t listen, which caused Loki’s blood to boil. He would have smacked the man away, but then he would have had to move his hands from his head. He was horrified when he felt the skin just above his eyes finally tear, and blood started running between his fingers.

The blood stung his eyes, and he tried to pull away from Tony. He stood, but Tony held him still. Suddenly he felt a twinge on the back of his neck that hurt almost as much as his pounding head, and he glared at the other man to see him holding a syringe. He was preparing to yell at the man, when his knees gave out.

He did not lose consciousness. He was able to feel Tony catch him, even as the pain in his head started to melt away. He could hear the man whispering… something. Vaguely. He tried to listen more intently, closing his eyes. Tony was warm. He hadn’t been held in… in years. Not like this. Slung over Thor’s shoulder didn’t count. 

“It’s okay. It’s okay.”

Loki would have corrected him if he’d had the ability.

He never fully passed out. Whatever Tony had given him, that wasn’t what it was meant to do. He was vaguely aware of everything that happened after, just unable to react to it, and not feeling the pain.

What he did feel was Tony dragging him back to bed. He felt a pillow being placed under his head. He sensed Tony leave, but come back a few moments later and dab a wet cloth on his forehead, wiping away the blood. It was cold enough that he knew if he could feel it would have served to dull some of the pain. He knew Tony was talking to him the entire time, but he wasn’t able to focus for at least half an hour. It was just a vaguely comforting mumble.

Once he was coherent again, at least enough that he could hear, Anthony was still tending to his head, and he closed his eyes tightly.

“How… how big are they?” he finally dared to ask. He stared straight ahead, refusing to look at the man.

Anthony paused with the washcloth and looked at Loki’s head, considering. After a second he held up his thumb, placed it out of Loki’s vision beside what he was forced to assume was one of his new appendages, and then pulled it back again with a nod.

“I didn’t know frost giants had horns.” he said quietly. “I saw footage, and they didn’t--”

“It’s recessive.” Loki informed, keeping his voice extremely measured. “Those that do receive them bind them back flat against their heads when they first start growing. They do not look like horns that way...”

He reached up, tugging lightly on one of the horns. Anthony hadn’t lied, they were about the length of a thumb (perhaps a bit larger), and curved slightly upwards, but were certainly not flat against the scalp the way jotun warriors kept them. The ones that had horns were revered as special, as select warriors, born with armor, essentially- though the jutun usually phrased it more poetically. 

“It takes years for them to grow.” he whispered. “Naturally.”

“I’m assuming puberty?” Tony asked, smirking. “You’re finally a big boy, Grouchy Smurf.”

The silence between them was dangerous, in a way Loki hadn’t made it in a very, very long time. He’d been quite tame, in fact, but when he focused his red eyes on Anthony this time there was no humor hidden underneath. No curiosity. Only bitterness.

“Do not mock me, Stark.” he warned. “I am in no mood.”

He was shocked when Anthony did not immediately respond with some sarcastic quip about him being ‘declawed’ or otherwise powerless.

“It seems like they’ve stopped growing.” he said after the silence. “They don’t look so bad.”

“Are… you trying to  comfort me?”

Loki threw out the question as if it were a dirty accusation, and finally managed to stop staring at the distance to study Anthony’s face. The man met his eyes and kept his expression stoic, which was… awkward. Loki wasn’t sure if he liked seeing him without that damn smirk.

“I might be.” he said. “I mean, think of the money you’ll save on stupid headgear with your own set, right?”

Loki huffed, but his lips curved slightly. Good. At least he wasn’t going to keep acting oddly. Without thinking of it, he moved his hand back up to tug on his horn again. It was like a tooth. He couldn’t  feel the actual horn, only a slight tugging on the skin around it. It was raw, but he could tell that once he healed they wouldn’t be painful. 

“Might I request a mirror?”   


Tony seemed to hesitate when Loki asked to see himself, much to Loki’s annoyance. A headache was bad enough, really.   
“I have no magic, what do you imagine I might do with it?” he snapped.

Tony sighed.

“It’s not as though I don’t  trust you with a mirror…” he claimed, rolling his eyes. “You realize it’s two in the morning?”

Loki hadn’t. To be fair, he didn’t actually have any means of telling time beyond asking Jarvis, and even if he did have it, it had very little effect on his daily life. He slept when he was tired, he read when he wasn’t. He imagined that his sleeping cycle had regressed to something entirely different from day/night. Tony, however, was currently wearing a shirt and a pair of shorts, and they did not match. Loki had to assume this was because he hadn’t been wearing  one of them in bed.

He wondered which one.

“Not staying up all night obsessing over your holograms?” Loki asked. Tony didn’t answer. “I doubt either of us is going back to sleep anytime soon.”

“Maybe  you’re not.”

“Not without seeing a mirror.”

At that point, Tony seemed to realize Loki wasn’t bluffing. Loki wasn’t sure what he would do if Tony just left and didn’t return with a mirror, but thankfully the man did come back. He handed Loki a cheap plastic mirror that was almost too light for his hands, and the trickster did not give himself time to think of it before turning it to his face.

He hadn’t prepared himself. Despite seeing his tinted skin on his body, and the marks on his arms and torso, he still had not truly been ready for what he would see in the mirror. 

His face had the markings that matched his true heritage. Etchings, like recently healed scars closed over his previously smooth face. The tint of his skin revolted him, but not so much as the eyes and horns.

His eyes were a shocking shade of red. Almost pink in the sclera, but his iris was darker, outlined in a deep dark black, which made his still-black iris look like a black hole. The horns were still bloody at the base, fresh… They were tinted slightly gold, and shined in the light.

They were only three or so inches long, but they also were twisted like a rams, very close to wrapping around themselves. 

In the mirror, Loki watched his lip curl with disgust and he tossed it away. There was a satisfying smash that he had been missing when he was screaming before. At least he didn’t need magic to cause  some  destruction.

Meanwhile, Tony huffed.

“‘ Oh Tony, give me the mirror! ’ he said...” he complained, putting on a vaguely insulting voice that was certainly mockery but sounded nothing like Loki to begin with. “‘ What could I possibly do with a mirror ?’”

As he went over to clean up the mess Loki had made, the dark-haired man pulled his knees up to his chest, hanging his head. He wasn’t paying attention to Tony, until he was close by again.

“You alright?”

Loki glanced up, not quite sure if he could answer that. Tony was being serious again.

“Hey… You like sweet stuff?” Tony asked, and Loki tilted his head to the side. Before he could come up with a response, Tony turned to the chute that Jarvis passed Loki’s food through. “Jarvis. Two bowls of ice cream… Chocolate.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I am in no mood for feasting either, Stark.” Loki mumbled, only slightly annoyed by the idea of food because it reminded him of his earlier plan.

Seduce Anthony... Not like this. Not  looking like this. He was a monster.

“It won’t be a feast.” Tony replied. “It’s just comfort eating. Chocolate makes everyone feel better.”

Loki cringed inwardly but didn’t respond again. He was presented with a large bowl of ice cream, and it… well, it did look tempting enough that he took it. Tony sat down at the end of his bed and took a few bites of his own, and after a moment Loki took one as well.

It was good. Good enough that he finished the bowl.

“ Don’t throw it.” Tony warned as soon as he saw Loki was done, carefully leaning forward and taking the bowl away. “Do you want more?”

Loki nodded, and Tony did fetch him another bowl. He ate that one, too, though more slowly. They had both been quite large. 

“See? I told you it would help.” Tony said as he snatched the other bowl away as if Loki would chuck it. Loki supposed it was fair, at this point, between the mirror and the way he knew his brother behaved when eating.

He put the bowls back into the chute and then leaned against the wall, just staring at Loki. Loki did not put on much of a show, still sitting slightly curled into himself, not moving.

“Seeing you like this is freaking me out.” Tony finally said. Loki immediately moved his hand up to hide his new appendages from view. “Not that part… jeez. Being all mopey. It doesn’t suit you.”

Tony moved forward, again approaching the tricksters bed and sitting down at the end of it. Loki lowered his hand, annoyed that he couldn’t hide his insecurity. Tony was always able to watch him through Jarvis, so even if he were alone he would be failing.

“Are you worried you aren’t hot anymore?” he asked, his tone clearly trying to be comforting but also teasing. Loki tensed. “You still got that long, dark, luxurious  mane \--”

He probably would have kept going with his teasing if Loki hadn’t cut him off.

“You’ve done it.” he said, tone dark. “You and Thor have managed to take  everything from me that connected me to her.”

Tony was stunned into silence by that, at least for as long as a man such as Tony could manage to stay silent. Loki did not go on, did not explain how his magic had subtly adjusted him to resemble her more than their father. How he’d subconsciously taken her facial structure, the color of her skin, as he grew. Now all of that was gone.

“Even if I were to get my magic back, these will mark me forever. An illusion could cover them, but...” 

“You’ll still feel them. I get it.” Tony said when Loki was quiet for too long. “It’s not as if you don’t know why we had to do this. You didn’t leave us with any choice.”

“Thor has been preaching of  choice to me for so long, and yet he will claim there is no other when it is convenient for him.” Loki spat. 

Tony’s jaw tightened and he stood.

“You did horrible things, Loki.” he said. Despite how tense he sounded, all Loki could think about for that moment was that it was the first time Stark had used his name in his presence. “You refuse to apologize, laugh at the idea of being redeemed… You you like it’s all some game.”

Loki met Tony’s eyes, but the man turned away quickly.

“It’s not a game anymore.” he said sternly as he left the cage.  
The lights turned off, and Loki let out a half-laugh, moving his hand back up to one of his horns. He ran his thumb along the edge of it, surprised that it was so smooth.   
“I know. I lost a long time ago.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So some people are gonna be really mad at me for adding horns, probably. There's so much canon and fandom all mixed and matched together. In the end, it's just what I decided to do because it helped move the story forward in the direction I wanted it to go. I'm sorry that the horns don't fit with the canon (though they do definitely have bony appendages in the movie, which I also tried to explain a bit), but neither does Loki behaving the way he does in this, really... It's all just nonsense. Hopefully it's fun to read and makes enough sense that it didn't upset a bunch of you guys.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last time (for those who don't want to read about blood): Loki grew horns. Tony tried to comfort him with some ice cream, but was rebuffed enough that he left.

Once again, Loki did not see Anthony for days after their meeting. This time, it stung a bit more than before. He thought they had a good repertoire, not that he needed someone to talk to. He read his books, and developed a new hobby.

Comfort eating , that’s what Tony had called it. Already Loki had been eating to excess because he was horribly bored, but now every time his hands wandered to the blasted horns and he was reminded of what he’d become, he would order a bit extra. If he ate until it hurt, he could forget about the damned things.

At least they did not grow any larger, but they were just big enough that it was impossible to bury them beneath his hair. Perhaps a helmet could have, but considering Tony was only giving him shirts and pants, he didn’t imagine he would be given full reign of his wardrobe anytime soon.

When Tony did finally visit again, Loki was reading in the corner, back right against it, the chute his food came from within arms reach. He hadn’t requested anything recently, but the plate of donuts from breakfast and the bowl that had been filled with pretzels were still waiting to be put away again. He had been caught-up in his reading, and had no reason to suspect that Anthony would show.

When the doors did open he looked up and smiled, though it was quite bitter. Before he could even see the man he called out.

“Finally decided to pay your pet a visit?” 

He heard Tony sighed and watched as he entered, arms once again laden with fast food. Loki wasn’t entirely sure he was in the mood to indulge the man, but it did smell nice, and it was around lunchtime now.

“Peace offering.” Tony said, dropping the food on Loki’s bed (still the only piece of furniture).

Loki pushed the plates from his breakfast (and snack) into the chute and stood up, staring at Tony skeptically. Tony stepped back until he was leaning against the opposite wall. As if he were offering food to a dangerous animal he was trying to train.

Well, that was still better than before, at least he realized Loki was still dangerous.

Even if it was only because he looked the part now.

“Why?” Loki asked, stepping forward. He suspected that Tony pitied him, which did very little for his appetite.

Tony shrugged and glanced away. He seemed genuine enough, at least.

“A table to put food on may have made for a better gift.” Loki pointed out, rolling his eyes. “I have to sleep here, in case you’ve forgotten.”    


Despite himself, Loki found it hard to treat Anthony quite as horribly as he wanted to. He was rather lonely, and Tony had done very little actually wrong. This was still much better than his cage in Asgard.

“And I can trust you wouldn’t break that like the mirror?”

Loki laughed and shook his head.

“Unless the table shows me something that offends me, there’s no reason to fear for it’s safety.”

Tony sighed, and Loki started to unpack his new feast. He didn’t start eating quite yet. He knew that Tony wanted him to, though the man didn’t seem to be on the edge of his seat with desire. Still, why else would he bring Loki food? As far as kinks went, it was actually so tame it bordered on innocent. Tony liked feeding people- watching them eat. 

Borderline adorable, really. Not that Loki would use that word out loud.

Maybe it had something to do with his heroism. Providing for others becomes such a complex, eventually it ties directly into one’s libido. Then again, Loki would rather not delve too deeply into  why some people had certain sexual obsessions. Who was he to judge, really?

As if reading his mind, Anthony suddenly spoke up.

“So… Astir hlydni?” 

“What about it?” Loki asked.

“I tried looking it up. Couldn’t seem to find anything on that exact phrase, though.”

“I wouldn’t imagine you would. You know us Asgardian’s and our fun words.”

Tony huffed and waited, staring expectantly at the Asgardian in question. Loki tilted his head, waiting for Tony to actually ask. It was an odd standoff, but Anthony was the one who finally gave in.

“What does it mean, then?” He sounded annoyed. 

“What do you think it means?”

“Well, the context clued me in a little. I’m not dense.”

Loki smirked and finished unpacking his meal, but instead of eating it walked to the other side of the bed and leaned against it, watching Stark.

“Astir hlydni… is the name of a subset of Asgardians who have certain… needs to be met.” he explained. “Before they reach carnal pleasure.”

He rattled it off as if he’d clinically dissected his desires a thousand times, though this was actually the first case of him needing to do so. However the look on Tony’s face was precious.

“It’s common in Asgard to be upfront with your desires.” he continued. “It keeps people from becoming hopeful for someone who is not compatible. Humans are so messy about it. You give your hearts to people who can never please you.”

“That’s… well.” Tony started to defend, but for whatever reason trailed off. Loki chose to believe it was because he made a good point. “So what sort of desires does it... imply?”

Loki made sure to meet Stark’s eyes while he replied this time.

“Obedience.” he did not allow his voice to sound ashamed or waver. Despite the society he grew up in encouraging him to be upfront, the fact that he was the crowned prince with his particular interest had always been a point of contention.

For quite a long while, he thought it may have been the reason his father turned against him, before he found out the real reason.

“Obedience.” Tony repeated, and Loki appreciated that it wasn’t a question. “You like being told what to do.”   
Loki nodded.

“What about… you said you liked being humiliated.” 

Loki nodded once more. 

“If I don’t obey… Then it’s no fun if I’m not punished. No point in obeying in the first place, really.” he pointed out. 

“But you still ‘control’ it?” Tony asked.

“Of course.” 

“How?”   
“It’s all agreed upon ahead of time. The parameters are defined. Ways of communication are established.” he said simply. “It’s common, in Asgard. Astir hlydni are revered for their dedication.”

“Oh really?” Tony asked, smirking. “I imagine that any group you’re a part of are revered.”

Clearly Tony was joking, but Loki didn’t let it go.

“The need to dominate- astir vald- is much more common. Those who enjoy succumbing to that will, and do so well? Naturally, we are more sought after.” Loki said. “There are other labels, of course. Many overlap and combine. Vald hlydni is a person who has mastered both.”

Even more rare, but they usually sought others in their own group.   
“Why be so open?” Tony asked. “It’s much more common here to hide these things. It can’t just be so you know right off the bat who will… service your needs... properly.”   


Anthony looked so squeamish. How did humans function like this? Did they even have sex? Did any of them like it- at all? Loki understood the question, but mulled over it for a moment.

“For some astir hlydni, it’s a matter of safety. If it’s kept behind closed doors, unable to be discussed, astir vald could take advantage. Ignore the rules and hide the pain they are causing their mate.” he said. His stern gaze finally moved away from Tony. “That is also a common trait, among any race. The laws protect both parties, but those laws are only in place because people are not ashamed.”

Tony crossed his arms. He looked thoughtful for a moment, and then smiled.

“Well… I’ll leave you to your meal.” he said softly as he pushed off from the wall and started out.

Loki decided against calling out. He was mildly annoyed that Tony did not share his desires in return- though Loki believed he knew already. Tony took to the authoritative role quickly enough without even knowing about Loki’s desires, and the way he looked at Loki when the Asgardian ate...  
Either way he’d given Tony a lot to think about, and he was sure the man would be thinking about it for a long time to come. In fact, he imagined Tony would find it hard to think about much else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, a lot of people didn’t like the last chapter- sorry about that. The reception was mostly negative, I should have tried harder and feel really bad about it. I’m going to keep trying, though. There’s a lot I would change if I did it again, I’m actually considering just erasing that entire chapter but… well, the horns are mentioned quite a bit in the following chapters- and I like them. I'm worried that rewriting will just make me go on a hiatus again, and I don’t want to abandon the project entirely, (again) so I’m going to continue and hopefully people won’t hate it as it goes forward. That sounds like an excuse but I will try harder, I just don't want to stop and go back atm because I know myself well enough that doing so will stop all progress. I definitely get where the negative response is coming from and understand how I fucked up. Honestly, I’m posting this chapter way sooner than planned because the feedback from the last one is… super discouraging, so I want to try to ‘make up’ for my bad chapter with one that’s hopefully better and people might like. 
> 
> It's still not steamy yet, but... well, slow build is one of the tags, lol. Soon. Though not as soon as before because my pacing is all over the place so I'm rewriting the chapters that follow this one, too. One day I'll go back and maybe insert a chapter between 9 and 10 to help with that buildup, but right now I just want to keep moving forward. Hope I didn't lose a bunch of you forever because of one really shitty chapter.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to put out one more chapter before leaving for the convention!

It was about a week after that encounter that Anthony visited again. Loki expected as much. He didn’t ask questions he wasn’t supposed to, even though he realized that was the fastest way of summoning his captor. He supposed he could just ask Jarvis to tell Anthony he wanted him, but that was not in his nature. Besides, clearly their last conversation left Tony with a lot to think about. That was enough, for now.

Even though he was used to a much worse prison, and received much more hospitality here than he had in Asgard, Loki still desired more. He knew it was unreasonable, but on the other hand he would much _prefer_ freedom and that was just as unreasonable according to the ones keeping him here. He didn’t mind talking the Jarvis, but over time that became tiresome as even without a face, the walls were easy to predict. His answers were programmed, after all. And predictably Loki's books became boring and even when he asked for new ones, he became restless.

He’d been put through all sorts of torture- the type he didn’t consent to _or_ control- in his last prison. Right now, boredom seemed worse. He knew that wasn’t true, but perception was key. At least the torture was in the past, the boredom was current, and near-constant. Reading and eating numbed it, but only for so long.

When Anthony did come, he was wearing a thin white tank-top, and Loki could see his heart glowing beneath it. Well, the mechanism which replaced his heart, but that was semantics. He could hear it humming, as well, which was something he hadn’t noticed before. Maybe the noise was half the reason Anthony always had dark circles under his eyes. Of course Loki knew well enough that his obsession was the bulk of the source of that particular problem.

Not that Tony didn’t look perfectly fine with those markings. Loki’s were worse, etched into his skin and defining him as a monster. He’d spent quite a few nights now running the pads of his fingers over the design. In reality they were no deeper than the most shallow of scratches, but to Loki they felt like canyons on his flesh.

“Am I always going to have to wait nearly a fortnight for your company?” Loki asked, closing the book he’d been reading with a resounding thud.

“Miss me, did you?” Tony questioned in return while matching Loki’s prodding tone.

Loki rolled his eyes and sat up, licking away some powdered sugar from the fingers of the hand that he had delegated to eating while the other help up the book. Jarvis had called them doughnuts, and they were delicious. He preferred anything dipped in honey or glaze, but after Jarvis had told him there were hundreds of combinations he’d dedicated his time to trying all of them, two or five at a time depending on his mood.

“With no one but the walls to keep me company, I must eventually lower my standards for conversation.”

At first, Loki had been annoyed that Anthony seemed unphased by his wit, that it didn’t get under his skin the way it did for Thor and the other Asgardian’s. Over time, he was starting to enjoy that Tony returned the quips, instead. When he managed to make Tony smile, it made him feel accomplished. And... well, Tony's smile was quite nice.

Maybe he was becoming _slightly_ tamed. It didn’t make him less dangerous.

“There are a lot of plates spinning right now. You aren’t the only threat to the world, you know.”

“Just the worst.” Loki assured, setting the book on his bed. “I am sure your ragtag group can fend off the others easily.”

He didn’t quite mean it as a compliment, really, it only came off that way. Surely after beating _him_ , other threats were nowhere near as daunting.

“I imagine you have a reason for this visit? I doubt you came to actually keep a lowly prisoner company.”

Loki’s voice made it clear that he did not consider himself a ‘lowly prisoner’ by any stretch of the imagination. For his part, Tony finally opened the doors and stepped in. They closed behind him with a hiss. Airlock, most likely. No precaution was too cautious when housing a monster.

He wondered if they ever stored the Hulk in this room.

“There was something I needed to tell you, but I promise to hang around after if you don’t freak out on me.”

The Asgardian narrowed his eyes.

“And why, pray tell, would I… ‘freak out’?” he asked in a carefully measured tone.

Tony sighed and leaned against the bed. Whenever the man came it became glaringly obvious that the room needed some other sort of furniture. This room didn’t lend itself for company.

“I just got a message. Delivered by a _giant flaming bird,_ mind you, so I’m not exactly unscathed in all of this. It set fire to a really nice jacket. Still don’t know how it held the paper, really...”

Anthony paused, clearly hoping for a chuckle at the very least. Loki did not grant it, face somber.

“They want to take me back?” He ventured a guess, voice was weaker than he meant it to be, but he quickly tried to hide it with a dry humorless smirk. “Of course."

“No, not… not yet, anyway.” Tony said. “And after… well, I’m going to try to make sure they don’t. But Thor says there are rumors of people seeing you in Asgard. It’s impossible, but-”

Loki chuckled.

“They seem to believe I was the only trickster in all of the realms. There will always be sightings of the monster that parents warn their children about. I suppose they made me look like one, too.”

They couldn’t have gotten it exactly right, though. Even if they were close, every jotun had different marks on their skins. Like a fingerprint, or, maybe more fittingly- a snowflake. Unless one saw it in person they would not be able to replicate it. Not that the finer points would matter to whatever magic user was pulling the prank.

Tony nodded.

“He wants to make sure the collar is still working. Wants to make sure you’re still here, I guess. Doesn’t trust my word on it.”

Loki imagined that when it came to him, his brother had run out of ‘trust’. Finally. But he didn’t say as much.

“When?” Loki asked instead.

“Tomorrow. I suppose it was nice of him to send the warning, though also kind of defeats the purpose if you were actually sneaking out."

“It only defeats the purpose if _you_ warned _me_.” Loki pointed out, meeting Tony’s brown eyes with his red ones. “Which you did.”

Anthony maintained the eye contact, waiting a beat before shrugging.

“ _Why_ did you tell me?” Loki pressed.

“You deserved to know.” Tony responded, leaning back on the bed and propping himself on his palms. “I didn’t want to surprise you with that sort of thing. Would’ve been a dick move.”

Loki’s eyes finally drifted down. It was still… _odd_ that Tony cared whether or not he was cruel towards a prisoner. After his treatment in Asgard, this was strange. Maybe it was the reason he felt uncharacteristically enamored with Anthony. He'd rather believe it was his sex drive. It had been so long since he'd been taken properly.

“So, now you know.” Tony said with a sigh and a flourish. “And you won’t be surprised.”

The dark-haired man nodded, unsure of what to say. If he were a good man, he would have expressed his gratitude, because there was gratitude to express. He appreciated that he knew Thor would be coming, though there was not much he could do to soften the blow that would come to his pride being seen like _this._

But it all came back to his pride, eventually, and it kept him from saying thank you.

He caught himself running one hand over the other, feeling the markings. Not quite as telling as when he ran his fingers over his horns, but still betraying that he felt like a stranger within his own body.

“How’s your head?” Tony asked.

“I’ve had a week to heal, whatever damage was done has righted itself.” Loki replied stiffly, sitting up a bit straighter as he lied through his teeth.

He didn’t want to admit to Anthony that he was having trouble sleeping. That every time he lay his body flat his head would start pounding right beneath the newly-grown horns. He was sure that eventually he would either get used to the pain or it would fade, but for now he would rather hide it.

“Are you sure? If it still hurts I could--”

“I am certain.”

Tony didn’t look like he believed him, though that might have been because he knew Loki was a great liar.

“Alright, I probably shouldn’t have asked since I already knew.” he finally said after a beat of silence, shaking his head. Loki rolled his eyes.

“The collar.” he assumed. Correctly it seemed, as Tony nodded.

“Your heart rate goes up whenever you try to sleep- which you haven’t been doing much of, by the way. You only lie down for a few minutes and then you’re up again.” Anthony said.

“Why concern yourself? I’m not running off to Asgard, clearly you know that. Your only job is to keep me here, and here I am.”  Loki pointed out, raising his hands at the end, gesturing to the empty room.

“You need rest, and… look, just let me help, alright?” Tony asked, sounding exasperated. “I may be keeping you locked up, but I have no intention of torturing you.”

Loki could tell from Tony’s tone that he was completely serious. Which meant that on some level, the man knew what had happened in Asgard’s prisons. He wasn’t sure what version of the story Anthony had been given, but he was intent on avoiding the subject either way.

“No intention? Ever?” Loki asked, lifting a suggestive brow. "Under _any_ circumstances?"

Even though he’d been looking for a reaction, Loki hadn’t expected Tony’s cheeks to tint a dark shade of pink so quickly. Obviously Tony had spent time thinking about what Loki had taught him. It helped to raise Loki’s shattered self-esteem- if only slightly. The man coughed and turned his face away.

“I’ll try to develop a medicine that’ll work for you, but I’m not much of a biologist.” he admitted. “I have a few guys who could, but they’re… Well...”

Tony trailed off and Loki smiled.

“Unwilling?” he offered. Tony nodded. “Can’t say I’m shocked.”

“Like I said, I’ll work on it. I am the boss, after all. They'll do what I tell them to do eventually.”

Loki didn’t even make an attempt to hide his rolling eyes. The silence came again, but it wasn’t too uncomfortable. Tony was kicking his legs- Loki doubted he ever actually sat still.

There was a time when Loki would have confidently asked Tony if he had any other questions. He would have sat next to him on the bed and spread his body out, effortless and sexy. He would have tried to tempt the man and not once worried about coming across as desperate because he knew he had so much to offer.

That was before. Before his skin tinted ice blue and his eyes dyed red. When he was sure in his own skin. Now, he could tease, but not... _tempt_. He didn’t believe he could be effortlessly sexy anymore. He didn’t know this body, couldn’t imagine anyone being attracted to it the way it was now. He was hideous, and every inch of him revealed him to be as much a monster as the rest of his people. He wanted people to fear him, but not for how he looked.

Because he could not find the confidence, the silence lingered. Loki stayed up against the wall, wishing the room weren’t so brightly lit. If they were just slightly dimmed, maybe he could muster up the courage...

“So you said that when... couples reach an arrangement in Asgard, there are rules?”

Loki tilted his head up, no doubt drawing attention to his horns. He tried to remind himself that his body wasn’t the only thing that he had to offer. He was clever. He could still service Tony's needs.

“Not always couples, but... yes.” Loki affirmed. “There have to be.”

“Right… I guess it makes sense, but… Is it like laws? Or some sort of contract?”

Loki shook his head.

“There are laws as far as  breaking agreements, but what the parties involved agree to is fluid. Something like a contract doesn’t account for time passing, unless you amend it every night and include a full list of loopholes and exceptions.” Loki pointed out, slowly making his way back to the bed. He sat down beside Tony. Not too close, but enough that Tony could probably feel his body warmth.

 _Unless…_ Loki tried not to think of it.

“So how _does_ it work?”

Loki couldn’t understand how Tony _wasn’t_ grasping this, it seemed so simple to him.

“They _talk_ to one another, Stark. They agree on what they would like to do, and no one goes against what was agreed upon. If they do, depending on the degree of the offense, they are punished by law.”

“How do the ones carrying out the punishment know who to believe, then?” Tony asked, and Loki glanced away. No doubt he wouldn’t have asked that question if he weren’t talking to a renowned liar.

“Magic... The agreements are tied with magic, and when someone breaks the oath, the magic will expose them.”

As that sunk in Tony nodded and pushed himself forward. Was he trying to get away? Was he disgusted? No, certainly he wouldn't have asked if he wasn't... Loki’s confidence took another hit as the man moved across the room. Loki thought on his feet and picked up the remaining sweet on his plate, taking a bite. He made it seem natural, like he wasn't just doing it for Anthony, to lure him back.

“You’ve been, uh, eating a lot of sweets lately.” Tony pointed out. He didn't move back, but he was watching again.

“Is there anything you aren’t monitoring?” Loki asked innocently, tilting his head to the side. He could salvage this. Even if Tony wasn’t attracted to him, he did like it when Loki ate. He had an interest, a fetish, whathaveyou… “I have very little to do during the day. Trying new dishes helps pass the time.”

“So why doughnuts?” The question came so quickly that Loki knew he’d been waiting.

“I developed a taste.” Loki said with a smile, moving a hand to his stomach. Slightly softer, though considering how emaciated he had been, now he was just up to a healthy weight. “And with so many varieties, I was curious.”

“Have you tried a french cruller yet?”

Loki shrugged in place of a response, finishing off the treat. He’d tried at least two dozen varieties by now, but he had no idea what all of their names were.

“Jarvis?” Tony called out to the walls.

“As of yet, Loki has not made it to that particular pastry, sir.” Jarvis answered, reminding Loki that the thing was _always_ listening, even when he was quiet.

“How could you let that happen, buddy? Give us a half-dozen.” Tony spouted off, moving over to the chute.

Jarvis was able to deliver the doughnuts immediately, as he had been for the last few days. Usually it took him some time to get food, which is why Loki just asked what he had on-hand… Which meant that he was probably stocking up on _all_ types of doughnuts. Loki didn’t mind.

“Give it a try.” Tony said, holding out a plastic dish with six doughnuts on it.

Obviously they were new, since Jarvis had already pointed out he hadn’t tried them yet, but they looked quite different. Twisted, and coated in a glaze- which Loki had liked on other sweets. He grabbed the treat and took a bite, appreciating the way it collapsed as he sunk his teeth into it. At first he was disappointed it was mostly air, as most of the others he’d tried were dense, but it made up for that by being sweet, and sticky, and decadent.

The most delicious part about the snack, however, was feeling Tony’s eyes on him. He may be hideous with horns and garish skin, but clearly Stark had an obsession that was strong enough that he didn’t mind overlooking those things. Loki could work with that.

He caught the way Anthony held his breath as he watched his prisoner take the first bite, and didn’t seem to let it out until he’d finished the first of six. Tony didn’t reach for one himself, either. Six was hardly a problem, though Loki had had three already… He gulped down the last bite and reached for another.

“Good?” Tony asked.

“Indeed.” Loki started in on the second doughnut, pausing halfway through. “Are you planning on taking part?”

Tony shook his head, and then looked away very suddenly.

“Already ate. You go ahead.” he rambled, standing up. “I should get back to work. I’ll, uh… I’ll try to get someone on that… cure, for the headaches.”

Loki nodded though Tony didn’t turn back to see it. He waited a few moments to start eating again, entirely certain that he was being watched from the cameras that circled him. With that in mind, Loki tried to stay graceful as he laid on his back and cupped his bloated gut with one hand once he finished the selection.

‘ _This better work soon.’_ he thought, closing his eyes. ‘ _At this rate I’ll look like Volstagg in a handful of weeks. It’s not as if I have much of an opportunity to exercise these feasts off, Tony.’_

Not that he did much other than sleep and read. Even if he were given the means to exercise, that had never been one of Loki’s favored hobbies. After a moment of letting his meal settle Loki opened his book and began to read again, trying to silence his worries regarding the following day. His brother posed no real threat, except for the shame he would feel for being seen this way... It couldn’t be helped. He would antagonize his brother, Thor would prickle but remain firm and resolute. He was stubborn.

But he also wasn't stupid, which is why Loki wondered why the blond would suspect he was escaping. He must have known it was some prankster. Which begged the question. Why bother coming? Loki would have to press him for an answer. He sighed and started delving into the story his book presented him with, trying to push all problems from his mind for the time being.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special note: I want to thank everyone who commented on the previous chapter from the bottom of my heart. I was feeling really awful about the story because so many people didn't like the newest chapter (for, as I said, legitimate reasons, which is why I apologized for not trying harder before posting). Your comments really made me want to continue writing this when I was considering scrapping the whole project. Like I said last time, I will be super busy for the next two weeks, but once I come back I hope it won't be too long until I can get the next chapter up. My gratitude to all of you, and I'll see you next time!


	13. Chapter 13

As one would predict considering his throbbing headaches and stressful news, Loki did not sleep well the night before his brothers visit. In fact, he did not sleep much at all. He imagined that his dark circles must have been as pronounced as Tony’s at this point. He could only theorize their color. Black, maybe? Or more likely a very deep, royal blue. His skin was still pale even with it’s azure hue, so it couldn’t be that much darker beneath his eyes. 

Either way, he knew he looked a mess. Even more so than the last time Thor visited him in the hospitable jail their parents had provided him, before he was locked away with Fandral and the other guards ‘taming’ him.

Because he could only venture a guess as to when Thor would arrive, Loki kept to light meals. This was no time to be at Stark’s mercy, even though it would be interesting to see how he reacted to such a thing around others. Would he try to avoid looking? Or maybe he was a voyeur, and it would only excite him more?

That was an experiment for another time. Loki wanted to cling to whatever dignity he may have left, and he would do so with a flat stomach.

“ Thor.” Loki whispered, getting to his feet as the blond entered. “It certainly has been too long.”

But Thor did not look at him. The burly Asgardian did face the cage, but he looked past the prisoner locked within with a firm resolve. His eyes avoided making contact with his brother in any way. Loki approached the clear wall containing him, mirroring the taller man, shoulders back and exuding confidence he did not feel. He tried to find his it and failed many times last night, but he wanted to make sure Thor did not see how shaken he was, how lost he felt.

“ He hasn’t tried to escape?” Thor asked, turning back to look at Tony. “You haven’t lost track of him at all?”

“ Nope.” Tony confirmed, crossing his arms. He still seemed mildly annoyed that Thor was questioning his aptitude. “Shockingly enough, he’s been a model prisoner, besides eating about three hundred bucks worth of food in one day.”

“ _ He _ is right here.” Loki pointed out, but Thor did not flinch or look towards him at all. To his credit, Tony met his eyes and shrugged out a small apology. Tony was probably not observant enough to realize how that small show of empathy made Thor stiffen.

“ The collar is working?”

‘ _ If you looked at me, you’d see that it is.’ _ Loki thought, tensing.  ‘ _ Do you think I  _ _** chose ** _ _ this?’ _

“ Did you doubt me?” Tony asked, oblivious to Loki’s bottled anger.

Thor shook his head, but clearly there was still something wrong. His brows stayed furrowed. Most notably, he still did not look at Loki, even when the man was standing right in front of him on the other side of the glass.

“ If I  _ had _ my magic, do you imagine I would look like this?” Loki hissed, narrowing his eyes. He didn’t give Thor time to respond, because he had more pressing questions. “Did you enjoy it? Did it give you a little  _ thrill _ when you heard you could finally do it? You were always hopeless with magic, absolutely pathetic. So you took it from me.”

He just wanted Thor to face him, but the blonds eyes still stayed adamantly over his shoulder, looking instead at the wall behind Loki.

“ Enough.” Thor said quietly, turning back to the door. “I’m satisfied you have him under control, but you need to kee---”

“ ** Look at me ** !” Loki suddenly bellowed, slamming a fist against the clear wall of his prison. 

Thor tensed, Tony tensed, and Loki glared. After a moment, Thor turned, and his eyes locked with Loki’s red ones.

“ Look at what you did to me.” Loki growled. “What  _ you _ turned me into.”

Obediently, Thor’s eyes scanned Loki’s body. Still thin, though Thor would not be able to see that his adopted brothers concave midsection had filled in through his black shirt. Maybe a little extra filled, but not enough to see, not yet... Besides, there were more important, obvious changes. 

The skin, the horns, his bright red eyes. His hair had grown enough to sit against his chest, rest between his shoulderblades. It was brushed as well as Loki could manage using his fingers. He looked every bit the wild frost giant he was always meant to be- except for the height. Any day now, Loki feared. 

He held his breath as he waited for it. The disgust. Loki knew it was coming, and he wasn’t disappointed- Thor’s lip twitched, just enough to let his real feelings show.

“ Mother would be so...  _ proud _ of you, brother.” he said in a soft voice. He didn’t imagine he would be able to change Thor’s mind, not anymore, but he still hoped he could at least hurt his pride. 

The statement settled for a moment, and then Thor leaned forward, mirroring Loki on the other side of the wall.

“ I did not turn you. I tore away your mask.” he whispered. “And revealed you for the monster you are.”

Loki was going to smile, he was going to laugh and throw an insult back into Thor’s face, but the blond did not stop there.  
“ Do not call me brother again.  _ My _ mother would have been revolted by you.”

In that sentiment Thor managed to summon up every feeling of anger and disgust he was feeling and throw it back into Loki’s face. Loki tried to hide the hurt, but from the way Thor’s face immediately lost some of its resolve, clearly he hadn’t managed to hide it well enough. 

If he hadn’t been so floored by the statement, there would have been plenty of time for a witty quip. He felt as though Thor had stabbed him in the chest, though that would have been worlds kinder. So much for retribution, rehabilitation. All of that was what he told Anthony, when the reality was simply that he wanted to throw Loki away.

They had already turned when Loki managed to raise his eyes again. They were wet, but Loki did not allow himself to cry. Not in front of him.

“ Why did you come here?” He asked, his voice hoarse. Thor did not stop, and it took Loki a moment to find his voice again. Stronger now. The door had opened when he managed. “ ** Why did you come here ** ?”

The sound of Loki’s voice echoed on the empty walls, louder than he thought he was capable at the moment. It was demanding enough that Thor stopped and turned. Anthony seemed completely helpless and small beside him, but he tried putting his hand on Thor’s chest to turn him back around anyway. Thor pushed past and walked back to the cage, his eyes focused on Loki’s.

“ I needed to see the truth of you for myself.” he said in a strong, measured tone. “To sever my ties with you as a brother. To see you as you truly are, as others have begged me for years.”

He moved his hand up to the glass, as if trying to pin Loki against a wall even though they were separated. Somehow Loki still felt more trapped now than a moment before, so it worked.

“ You are  _ not _ an Asgardian. You are frost giant filth, and you always have been. It is right of you to finally look the part.” Thor continued. “You will never leave this realm, never return home, do you understand me?”

Loki stepped back, arms falling uselessly at his sides. Before he realized what he was doing, he nodded. He was… scared. Vulnerable. He knew it showed on his face, he didn’t have the strength to try to hide it. It took everything he had not to let the tears fall.

It was as close to merciful as Thor could be that he finally turned away and stormed out of the room so quickly. Tony looked back at Loki, almost as if he was going to say something, but then followed the red cape out.

Once the door was closed, Loki stumbled backwards. To his bed. He didn’t even crawl up into it, instead he slid his back down the surface and curled into himself on the floor.

She would have been ashamed.

Thor was right.

“ _ A true king admits his faults.”  _

“ _ Always so perceptive about everyone besides yourself.” _

“ _ Am I not your mother?” _

He had answered no. He’d meant the illusion, he’d simply meant to change the conversation away because he was too angry to apologize to her, to admit his fault. She had known that, she’d smiled, but…

She’d smiled at her  _ son _ . Not as a frost giant abomination. If she could see him now…

Loki felt cold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back from the busy two weeks and excited to post again! Of course I come back all giddy and post one of the most depressing chapters so far... yeah. Next one should be out soon, and depending on your definition of 'happy', it's a happy one!
> 
> (Note: If you define 'happy' and 'holy shit we finally got some real porn in this PwP'.)


End file.
